Page 16 of Worth the Fall

"I wish. Spent three hours in mediation discussing who had the right to post their wedding photos. The husband insisted he 'brought more aesthetic value' to their grid."

"That's actually impressive," I say, shaking my head. "Though I did once have to argue about whether a comma in a contract was actually a smudge on the paper, so…"

"No way."

"Yes way. Two companies, millions of dollars at stake, and it all came down to whether there was a comma after 'hereinafter.'"

His eyes crinkle with amusement. "And?"

"It was chocolate. Someone had been eating a candy bar while reviewing the contract."

We both burst out laughing, drawing glances from nearby tables. It feels good to laugh like this, I realize. Easy.

"Okay," he says, still chuckling, "but have you ever had to explain to a judge why your client's emotional support peacock should be allowed in the courtroom?"

"You did not."

"I did. His name was Herbert."

"The judge?"

"The peacock."

This sets us off again, and I have to put down my coffee cup to avoid spilling it. When we finally catch our breath, Miguel wipes his eyes and says, "So, what's your worst first date story? Can't be worse than mine."

"Oh? Do tell."

He groans dramatically. "Picture this: I decide to impress this woman by taking her rock climbing. Indoor gym, totally safe. Except I didn't know she was allergic to the chalk they use and neither did she. One handhold in, she starts sneezing. By the time she’s a third up the wall, she’s hacking uncontrollably. She insisted that she could finish and kept going. Finally, the guy assisting her made her come back down. Her eyes were so swollen shut she couldn’t see, so she knocked over a display of rental shoes, setting off a chain reaction that ended with me falling into the kids' ball pit. Still had chalk in my ears three days later."

I'm laughing so hard my sides hurt, but then he asks, "What about you? Worst first date?"

I feel my cheeks warm as I shrug shyly. "I don't really have many to choose from. I started dating Cameron when I was fifteen, so…" I trail off, then brighten. "Oh! I did go on a date with Austin a few weeks ago."

Miguel's eyebrows rise. "Austin? My Austin?" He shakes his head. "Not my Austin but my boss Austin?"

"Yeah." I laugh nervously. "One date that made it very clear we were meant to be only friends. He's actually been great through everything with Cameron."

"I know," Miguel says with a grin. "He told me about your date. Hope that's okay."

"Of course," I say, surprised to find that it really is okay. "Though I hope he left out the part about the snotty, crying breakdown and running off to the bathroom incident?"

"There was a snotty bathroom incident?"

"And that's all you're getting out of me," I say primly, making him laugh again.

"Thank you for this," he says, gesturing between us. "It's nice to have a conversation that doesn't involve princess stickers or pool furniture litigation."

"Well, it’s nice to have a conversation that doesn’t involve Mercury being in retrograde making your business decision."

"Touché," he says with a smile.

"Well, I don’t want to take up your entire morning and looks like we’ve both finished our coffee."

He nods and we both stand, dropping our empty cups into the trash as we step outside onto the sidewalk. I don’t really have anywhere to be and I’m suddenly kicking myself for suggesting that we end the date.

"I had a great time, I, uh, hope I was able to provide something more valuable than just glitter and silly lawyer stories."

"I think I can handle a little bit of glitter," I say.

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